Next Time, A New Beginning?
by Crestilia
Summary: Ash Ketchum has his eyes set on another region, but as always, preparations must be finished before leaving. A short story about a certain Trainer's transition to the Alola Region. Is set after the events (and ending) of "The End of Team Rocket."


**I** **do not own Pokemon.**

 **Speech:**

"Talking."

 _'Thinking.'_

 _"Pokemon Talk, Aura, Telepathy."_

 _"_ _Pokedex/TV/Electronics._ _"_

 **This short story is a continuation of my other work: "The End of Team Rocket," and has spoilers relating to the ending of it.**

 **HA! Just kidding! This is more like an _alternate ending_ for the established sequel. **

**If you don't want to read EOTR (for some reason or another), all you have to know is that (SPOILER) Ash understands his Pokemon.**

* * *

When Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town announced his future traveling plans to his Pokemon, every member of his team was disappointed, although, in some way or another, they were expecting it. At this point, it was typical of their Trainer to 'start from zero' again every year. Even the teen himself knew that everything he had acquired in the Kanto-Johto regions would never be acknowledged, or even _known_ when he left.

And for some reason, it was perfectly okay.

* * *

" _Hm."_

Sceptile's twig moved up and down in his mouth as the Grass-Type examined his Trainer.

"How do I look?"

" _Your legs aren't far enough apart. Another—"_

"Better?"

" _Yeah."_

From the other side of the cave room, Donphan tapped the screen of a small device connected to a projector with the tip of his trunk. In a split second, another flagrant pose flashed on the screen, causing the teen to narrow his eyes.

"That looks painful," he commented, wincing as his arms started to burn as he forced himself to hold the awkward body position he was in. "Dangit. I feel like an airplane."

" _Bro, you're_ _supposed_ _to,"_ Krookodile spoke up, cleaning his Black Glasses slowly with a cloth as he relaxed on the cave wall.

" _Extend your arms longer,"_ Sceptile instructed. " _Oh, and your left isn't high enough."_

Ash adjusted.

" _Higher. Just a little...yeah, that'll do."_

" _Wow, that looks painful,"_ Heracross said, crossing his arms and nodding his head at the sight.

The Forest Pokemon tilted his head, examining the Kanto League Champion. " _Yeah, your right arm is too low. It should feel straight."_

" _Do I have to do it too?"_ Pikachu asked, staring at the image projected on the wall. He was perched on his Trainer's shoulder, making him suffer through the addition of excess weight.

"Yep."

" _But it looks stupid!"_

"That's the point."

" _Nope. I refuse."_

Ignoring his Starter, Ash slowly brought his left arm closer to his head, making a fist as he held it just above his eyes, parallel to the ground. His right arm mirrored his left and was held right above his stomach.

"Good?" he asked.

" _Your right is supposed to come in before your left,"_ the Grass-Type replied, correcting his Trainer.

"Are you going to make me do it again?"

" _Probably. Hm, your feet are supposed to be facing forward...and turn your waist so that your left shoulder is in front of the right. No, that's too little. Turn a bit—"_

A loud crack interrupted Sceptile's thoughts.

"Owww...my spine…"

" _That's what you get for traveling to new regions,"_ Pikachu spoke up, laughing at the expense of his Trainer, who had collapsed on the floor, lying on his back and letting out heavy breaths of exhaustion.

" _Hey, you got through pose #9. That's pretty good,"_ Sceptile complimented the teen. " _Pignite and Oshawott stopped at #3."_

"I'm pretty sure they aren't _that_ slow," Ash remarked, grunting as his Starter Pokemon sat on his chest triumphantly like he'd just been victorious in a match. "This feels like _yoga_ , especially since I've been holding that pose for...five minutes, now?"

" _We don't actually know how fast they're supposed to be,"_ Donphan admitted and pointed his trunk at Unfezant, whose face was hidden behind a clipboard. " _But we're hanging up her drawings after this, so it's worthwhile anyway."_

"Unfezant, you can draw?"

" _Yeah. Learned from Tracey. Now, smile,"_ the Proud Pokemon instructed, smirking slightly.

" _Okay, I think you might actually use this one,"_ Krookodile said, looking down at the sheet of paper held between his claws. " _It's called...Gigabolt Have-it."_

" _Gigavolt Havoc,"_ Pikachu corrected the Intimidation Pokemon, unsure of how his teammate could even see the words when he was wearing sunglasses in the the dark.

" _Oh. Sorry, brah."_

* * *

"Alright. If I'm going to pretend that I'm a terrible Trainer, I need new tactics," Ash announced to the Pokemon lounging in the room. He was sitting on a giant, lumpy couch, wrapped in a blanket with his Quilava. Dan the Tauros had taken up the rest of the furniture, snoozing quietly as he rested his head on the sofa's back. The Wild Bull Pokemon's hind legs rested on the ground, as he was too big to fit on the couch completely, but that didn't seem to bother the Normal-Type.

" _What does_ _that_ _mean?"_ Servine asked.

" _Whenever Ash goes to a new region, he sometimes pretends to be a new Trainer so he can raise a new team without anyone judging him,"_ Quilava answered bluntly.

"That's harsh. I just want to make new fr—"

" _Bogus!_ " Totodile piped up as he danced into the room. " _The bozo just has insecurity issues! Oh, and enjoys being a confidence artist!"_

" _What's that?"_ the Grass-Type asked.

" _I believe the 'mons of your generation call it '_ _con artist_ _.'"_

" _Oh."_

"That's not—"

" _Actually, he also wants to find the most efficient way to train his Pokemon in a short amount of time,"_ Buizel stated as he walked in behind his fellow Water-Type. " _So in just a few months of training, we could beat Cynthia or something."_

" _Really?"_ Servine asked.

"That's also a valid—"

" _Yeah,"_ the Sea Weasel Pokemon replied. " _So Ash pretends to be dumber than he already is."_

" _Oh. Makes no sense."_

Dan the Tauros yawned, stretching slowly as he woke up. " _Yo, wassup?"_

Buizel smirked. " _Ash's off to another region and needs help with his acting because he wants to prepare himself for another Unova-like region."_

"Just in case," the Trainer added.

" _Well, I'd start with mixing up the Type Chart, then you could work on lowering your pain tolerance and balance,"_ the Normal-Type suggested.

"Easy. The Type Chart's unreliable because Type disadvantages make opponents overthink themselves, and I'm not going to have Aura up."

" _How about...making the stupidest puns and jokes?"_ Quilava asked, snuggling into the blanket.

"I already do that, though."

" _Not anymore,"_ Totodile replied. " _You used to make some great ones, though. And your insults were...uh..."_

" _He means, 'on point,'"_ Servine added on, earning a grateful look from the Big Jaw Pokemon.

* * *

" _Alright, do the stance,"_ Sceptile instructed.

Ash 'did the stance.'

" _You look hilarious,"_ Meganium laughed. " _I can't believe I've missed out on some of this."_

" _Yeah,"_ Pikachu replied. " _You guys should come up here more often."_

" _But it gets cold sometimes. I only come when Charizard or Pignite is here,"_ the Herb Pokemon reasoned.

" _Hey! I'm a Fire-Type too, you know,"_ Torkoal whined, close to tears.

" _Uh, sorry! I meant like, in general,"_ the Grass-Type apologized.

" _You don't c-care!"_

" _Shhh! I—"_

"Hey Torkoal, why don't you battle in my next rematch with Ethan?" Ash interrupted, trying to calm his Fire-Type.

" _Dude, that guy is too persistent for his own good,"_ Pikachu remarked as Sceptile attempted to cover up a budding snicker.

"Be nice, Pikachu," the teen chastised his Starter, thinking about the numerous times the Kanto League Champion had been sought out by the aspiring Trainer. "I think he has a good heart and plenty of enthusia—"

" _Yes! Yesyesyesyes!"_ Torkoal suddenly cried out, bursting into tears. " _My Trainer loves me! I-I'm s-so happy…"_

" _He's delusional,"_ Pikachu whispered into Ash' ear.

" _In his defense, you are too,"_ the Trainer responded silently, focusing a little Aura.

" _Alright, back on topic,"_ Sceptile's announced. " _Ash, get back to your stance."_

"B-but—"

" _We literally have three days to learn these and you know it."_

The Trainer reluctantly crossed his arms in front of his face, making an 'X' shape.

" _Legs aren't wide enough,"_ Meganium commented. " _And you're supposed to be_ _smiling_ _."_

" _How many times do I have to tell you, Ketchum?! Left over right!"_

"Alright, fine…"

* * *

" _Now swing your arms out,"_ Sceptile instructed.

Ash 'swung his arms out.'

" _No, it's supposed to be in a circle!"_

" _Think: rainbows,"_ Pikachu suggested, snickering.

"Rainbows?"

" _Rainbows make me tear up,"_ Torkoal commented, munching on something from the nearby kitchen.

The Forest Pokemon narrowed his eyes. "Now punch out."

Ash 'punched out.'

"Left over right! And it's not high enough. Make it a 90° angle with the ground."

The teen slowly leaned back to bring his posture up. His discomfort became visible, especially with a strained grimace plastered on his face.

" _Didn't we establish that this was supposed to be much slower?"_ Meganium asked, making the other Grass-Type twitch.

" _Alright, do it aga—"_

"Please, no. I don't think I can keep this up," their Trainer groaned.

* * *

 _"Do you even know the name of the region?"_ Infernape asked as he shared the couch with his Trainer, who was still completely exhausted from the posing practice he had to go through earlier that day.

"Yeah. I think it's 'Aloha,' or something like that," Ash responded.

 _"Interesting,"_ Leavanny commented as he took a seat on the other side of the teen and began sewing together new pillows. _"The Aloha Region sounds...exotic. Fabulous, too."_

Staraptor huffed. _"I bet you don't even know the time zone it's in."_

"Yeah. Funny thing is, there's no 'Aloha Region' on the Internet. I tried searching it up, but nothing's there."

"Did you spell it correctly?"

"I dunno, although I _did_ hear that Bill was planning to add something called 'spellcheck' to his new search engine," the teen replied, shrugging.

* * *

" _Lunge right!"_ Sceptile suddenly shouted, startling Ash. The Trainer lost his balance and stumbled before instinctively grabbing onto a nearby table to help himself stand.

"Owww…"

" _Swing your left arm over as if you were walking—no, slower! Yeah, now shift your weight to the left and use your arms to make a straight line from shoulder to shoulder."_

"Eh?"

The Grass-Type showed his Trainer the sheet of paper he was holding.

" _That looks painful,"_ Pikachu snickered.

"I can't do that," Ash said, staring at the diagram. "My shoulders are literally unable to touch each other."

" _Hmmm...if not, I think we can get Heracross and Krookodile to push them together."_

"W-wait a second, let's rethink this."

" _Woah, look at the pose after that!"_ Ash's Starter suddenly exclaimed. " _It says: bend your elbows and wrists and lunge twenty percent further. Make sure that most of your weight is on your left foot, and don't forget to keep your shoulders together."_

"I'm going to suffer today, aren't I?" the Trainer asked, although he already knew the answer to his own question.

* * *

"Argh!" Ash shouted in pain, trying to hold the pose.

" _Don't forget to smile,"_ Meganium reminded her Trainer.

The teen tried to comply, gritting his teeth as he lifted the corners of his mouth in the attempt to form a white, toothy grin. His back arched backward as he tried to maintain his balance, his feet had started to slip further away from each other, and his hat fell off, resulting in an uncomfortable expression that made it seem as if he was forced into the position (honestly, it wasn't far from the truth).

" _You look like a clown,"_ Pikachu commented as the Pokemon surrounding the teen erupted into laughter at the expense of their Trainer.

" _I'm definitely hanging this one up,"_ Unfezant decided through giggles. She lifted up a claw, pencil poised perfectly, and started sketching.

" _Your shoulders aren't even touching,"_ Sceptile pointed out. " _And your knee isn't over your shoe anymore."_

* * *

" _Three days, huh?"_ Pikachu asked his Trainer, staring into the cloudless night sky.

"Technically, two," Ash corrected his Starter, lying on a sleeping bag next to the Electric-Type. "After tonight, that is."

" _Yeah. Don't forget to get some rest before boarding the plane, by the way. Last time you stayed up, we lost to a Snivy."_

The teen chuckled. "You mean, _you_ lost to a Snivy."

" _I disagree. Battling is a group activity. In a way, I can argue that you lost us the Kalos League."_

"Shhh. We don't talk about that," the Trainer joked, smiling widely.

" _Please. We should've won against that cheater."_

"Pikachu, be nice. Plus, we don't even know if he actually cheated or not," Ash reasoned.

" _It's BS and you know it. Almost as bad as that time when they allowed that Tobias guy into the Sinnoh League."_

"And how did _he_ cheat? Sinnoh doesn't have Kanto's battling rules."

" _They should."_

"It's a skill that Trainers need to know how to battle against," the Trainer said, pointing at a shooting star as it crossed the night sky.

" _There are only so many Pokemon in the world that can learn Sleep Talk."_

"You mean, _all_ of them?"

" _What?"_

"Ever heard of a TM?"

" _Yeah. But those are the most expensive things I've seen in my life."_

"Anyway," Ash shrugged, "we should tidy up our little cave before we head down to Pallet tomorrow. Then we can pack tomorrow."

" _Yeah, and don't forget to look up the battling rules for that region we're going to. Then I complain about all the battles we should've won if the other party hadn't cheated."_

"Alright. I'll do it tomorrow, then."

* * *

"What are these things even called?" Ash asked his Grass-Type instructor.

" _I don't know, actually. The paper was translated on the Internet."_

"Wait, what?!"

" _Yeah. Apparently, they use both contemporary Latin writing as well as a more complicated traditional script. Interesting, huh? I believe the former is dubbed 'English' while the latter is…'Hawaiian,' or something like that,"_ Sceptile explained. " _The alphabets are pretty similar, although they are read differently."_

"I'm almost afraid to ask, but what language were these…pose-thingies in?"

" _Hawaiian, of course. Apparently, they've been around for a long time. Don't even know what they're for, but the writer says they're useful."_

"Wait, you don't even—"

" _Nope. I think you'll need them, though."_

"Darnit."

" _What?"_

"Turns out I'm not getting any sleep tonight, 'cause I'll be learning Hawaiian! By the way, is the Viridian City Library open today?"

* * *

"Hey mom, I'm home!" the Pallet-Town native shouted as he opened the door to the house. There were bags under his eyes from the lack of rest, and his entire body felt weak from his Grass-Type's required 'yoga,' but the Trainer didn't let his fatigue show as he walked into the kitchen.

"Ash," his mom chuckled nervously, "can I, uh...tell you something?"

"Sure. What's up?"

Mimey the Mr. Mime snickered. " _Oh, he's gonna be pissed…"_

" _What is it?"_ Pikachu asked.

" _You'll see."_

Delia Ketchum chuckled nervously. "So you know how we went to renew your passport yesterday?"

"Yeah."

"They accidently got your birth date wrong, so you're officially ten now."

"Oh. Uh, alright."

" _Why is he not angry?"_ Mimey whispered to the Electric-Type.

" _This kind of thing happens a lot,"_ the Mouse Pokemon explained. " _Two years ago, his Professor Oak mistyped his birthday. And before that…"_

* * *

"Oh, so it's Alo- _la_ , not Alo- _ha_."

" _Wow, Ash,"_ his Starter grumbled. " _So typical of you. And now there's no time to research the region online anymore."_

* * *

"Hey, Pikachu."

The Electric-Type looked up to see his Trainer with an unusually pensive look. The airport was especially busy that day, and as Ash's mom was talking to a woman behind the counter about luggage, the iconic duo was sitting on some benches that lined the walls of the giant building.

" _What is it?"_

"I was just thinking, and realized that I hadn't said goodbye to you yet."

" _Why?"_

"You know. After we reach Alola, I'm not going to use my Aura."

" _Like, turn it off?"_ the Mouse Pokemon asked. " _You didn't tell me."_

"Oh. Uh, I thought I did."

Both the Trainer and Pokemon were silent for a few seconds. A group of girls a little younger than Ash had started to point at them, whispering to themselves. They had most likely been recognized, and the teen estimated that only a few hours would pass before rumors of the Kanto Champion being spotted at the airport would surface.

"So...this is goodbye?"

" _Not yet,"_ Pikachu insisted. " _Not until we get off the plane."_

"Ash!" Delia walked over to her son, dragging a small suitcase along. Mimey followed with his usual grin and cheerful disposition.

"Hey, mom."

"You ready?"

"...Of course."

* * *

The thud of wheels hitting Alolan ground and the roar of the engine was enough to send twist knots in Ash's stomach. It was a new adventure and was bound to be full of excitement.

But the sense of dread still carried within him.

" _Hey, Ash."_

"So, uh…"

" _Talk again in a year or so."_

The Trainer remained silent.

" _But please, don't let that be the case. Whenever we can, don't forget to_ pikapika, pika-chu."

"...We will. Don't worry."

With a forced grin and the adjustment of his cap, he lifted his partner to his shoulder and stood up, ready to take the first step of a new beginning.

* * *

 **AN: Awww, so sad. Anyway, thanks for reading.**

 **The true sequel to EOTR is "Secrets from a Faraway Land." In other words, this is pretty outdated.**

 **See you guys in Alola!**


End file.
